LYNN — Lynn Housing Authority and Neighborhood Development (LHAND) partnered with Delta Airlines and KABOOM! to construct a kid-designed playground at Curwin Circle on Friday. 

LHAND’s Director of Procurement Charles (CJ) Mihos said that the playground needed replacing after their insurance company informed them that the previous playground was no longer safe for play.

KABOOM!, a nonprofit with a mission to end playspace inequeity and build safe places for kids to play, reached out to LHAND to build a playground for and by their community

“The unique thing about this playground is that it would be designed by the kids at Curwin Circle,” Mihos said. 

Delta Airline’s General Manager of New England Sales, Candice Stover, said that Delta has been partnered with KABOOM! for about ten years. 

“KABOOM! Has done an amazing job for the last 30 years building playgrounds for underserved communities, and giving children the hope and joy that comes along with a playground build,” Stover said.

Stover said that her team and a community engagement team completed multiple site visits to find a location where they could “maximize” their impact on the community. 

“It’s a joy to watch the kids faces when the playground is complete,” she said.

Juana Colon, Daniqua Kelsey, Molly Kelly, Glendora Warren Turner, Sharena Peña, and Feliciana Soto are all residents of Curwin Circle who volunteered to work side by side with KABOOM! and Delta Airlines volunteers.  

Kelsey said that this team of six, along with other residents of Curwin Circle, spent the last few months on Zoom meetings picking out the playground equipment and planning the playground build with Delta and KABOOM! based on the design ideas of kids from the neighborhood. She said that building this playground is one way to keep the community safe.

“If you want change you have to be the change,” Kelsey said. 

Colon, who has been a resident of Curwin Circle for 21 years, said that she’s excited to see the smiles this playground will bring to the kids of Curwin Circle. 

“They deserve this,” she said. 

Colon and Kelly said that being part of the decision making process gave the community a voice to choose what playground design would best serve their needs. 

Director of KABOOM!’s community outreach, Ronni Rivera, said that multiple parts of the playground house “neurodivergent equipment” which will meet the needs of kids with divergent sensory experiences. 

Mihos worked with other volunteers to construct a ReviWheel Spinner — a playground element designed for ease of use for wheelchair users. 

Mihos said that due to the storm on Saturday many of the volunteers from across the country were not able to safely fly in to help build. 

“Despite the fact that it’s a smaller group than we originally intended, we’ve gotten a lot of work done — and hopefully the kids will enjoy this once we get it completed,” he said. 

Mihos said that Ward 7 Councilor Jordan T. Avery and April’s Pub & Grill Restaurant donated food for the volunteers.

Angelica Flores, Yelismarie Rivera, and Gefranny Lara helped deliver this fuel to the volunteers as they carried out this labor of love. 

Flores said that they were the “cheerleaders” for the volunteers — keeping their spirits high to bring the kids of Curwin Circle’s vision to life. 

Delta volunteers, Nicole Hanlon, Jennifer Zamora, and Sophia Zheng, took a short break from spreading mulch, and their slide building duties, to share their perspective on the project. 

Zheng, who is also a resident of Revere, said, “We’re excited to see this project come together.”

“It means a lot being able to contribute to something that’s so close to home,” she added.

The post What’s in a day at Curwin? A new playground. appeared first on Itemlive.

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